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[This retracts the article DOI: 10.7759/cureus.19954.].
ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: Identification of potential causes of academic difficulties and unsatisfactory student performance is essential for any educational institution. This study has been undertaken to identify risk factors that are associated with academic difficulties among medical students by exploring lifestyle and social factors, health problems, study and exam habits and psychological status of students at the faculty of medicine in Jazan University, Saudi Arabia. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This observational analytical case-control study was performed at the Faculty of Medicine at Jazan University to highlight the factors that influence the academic performance of medical students. We studied 40 students with academic difficulties (cases) and 40 controls based on their grade point average. Cases were matched to controls according to sex, age, and medical year. RESULTS: Several factors seem to negatively affect the students' academic performance; students with academic difficulties are older, require more time to reach the college, their perceived English proficiency is less than their counterparts, and they spend less time socializing. On the other hand, having a strong family support system, socializing with friends, access to the internet, and engagement in extracurricular activities seems to positively affect the students' performance. No difference was observed in study habits or sleep quality. The prevalence of anxiety, stress, and depression were all low for both cases and controls. CONCLUSION: We have identified many factors, most of which are related to the student's lifestyle and social habits, that positively and negatively affect academic performance.
ABSTRACT
Thrombotic events are well-recognized complications of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The incidence of such complications is highly related to the severity of COVID-19 pneumonia. Recent evidence suggests that the coagulopathy of COVID-19 may persist for some period even after the full recovery from pneumonia. We report the case of a 35-year-old man who presented with a 10-day history of fever and cough. His plain radiograph showed bilateral peripherally located opacities suggestive of COVID-19. The diagnosis was confirmed by the reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) for the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). He was placed on a non-invasive ventilator but it failed to maintain normal oxygen saturation. Hence, the decision for intubation was made. He was extubated after 10 days in the ICU. The patient had a complete recovery. One week after discharge, the patient presented with severe abdominal pain that was out of proportion to the physical examination findings. He had an abdominal CT scan, which demonstrated a large thrombus occluding the superior mesenteric artery. There was no bowel dilatation or focal mural thickening to suggest bowel ischemia. The patient was resuscitated with intravenous fluid hydration. Opioid analgesics were administered to control the pain. After stabilizing the patient, he underwent laparotomy with thrombectomy. The patient tolerated the operation with no complications and had an uneventful recovery. The patient was discharged in good condition with no active issues after four days of hospitalization. The superior mesenteric thrombosis is an unusual complication of COVID-19 pneumonia. This case provides further evidence on the possibility of thrombotic events following the recovery from COVID-19. There is a pressing need for future studies to investigate the role of prophylactic antithrombotic and anticoagulants in patients who recovered from severe COVID-19.
